Thursday, July 24, 2014

Big John is more than a coach to his cyclists

GLASGOW: Australian John Beasley has been coaching
the Malaysian cyclists since 2006 and, in that time, he has formed a
close bond with his charges.

It’s not wrong to say that Beasley is more than just a coach to the
national cyclists. He has certainly gone beyond that to forge a close
rapport with his cyclists, building up their confidence, standing up for
them and keeping them together as a close-knit family.

It is these qualities that he hopes will motivate them to success
when they begin their campaign in the 20th edition of the Commonwealth
Games at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow on Thursday.
And being protective about his charges, it was no surprise when he
recently used a press conference to take a swipe at world track cycling
officials for making decisions that have resulted in the
disqualifications of some of his riders in previous races.

He was particularly irked by an incident involving his top cyclist – Azizulhasni Awang.
“At the World Championships (in Cali in February), Azizul had a
chance to win a gold but a rider came from behind and they were involved
in a spectacular crash,” said the heavy-set Beasley.

“And it was Azizul who was blamed for causing the crash and the commissaire disqualified him
“If Azizul had been racing in a different jersey, this would not have
happened. Things like this get on my nerves. Some track officials lose
sight of what sport is all about. Despite all these, our cyclists
managed to hold their heads high and show good sportsmanship.”

At the same press conference, he became emotional when talking about
Josiah Ng’s comeback from a horrible crash. He also spoke highly of how
top woman rider Fatehah Mustapa has come a long way from being a
troubled cyclists to a world-class rider.

“Right now, I’m just pretty happy with the level of dedication from
all the cyclists. It has been rough for some of them,” he said.
Beasley has not set any targets for his cycling team but “I am confident they will make the country proud in Glasgow”.

“Unlike other countries, our team are expected to peak in two majors –
the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games (in Incheon, South Korea from
Sept 19-Oct 4),” he said.
“That can demand a lot from the athletes.

“No one wants to come back empty-handed from these major Games, but
rest assured that if we do get beaten, it will take a good team to do
it.

“We do not want to set unrealistic goals but, trust me, our team will make the country proud.”
The cyclists will be taking part in the men’s team sprint and women’s
500m time trial and there is a glimmer of hope that they will get
Malaysia off to a brilliant start in the Games.